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Child poverty

3.7 million children live in poverty in the UK, one of the worst rates in the industrialised world.

This means that children are considerably more likely to live in poverty than adults. It’s not necessary, it’s not acceptable, and we can do something about it.

Growing up in poverty can blight children’s well-being and their future life chances. For example children living in poverty are more likely to have poor physical and mental health and less likely to achieve their potential at school and in employment. For more information on the current state of child poverty in the UK see our briefing.

Try our calculator to get an idea of what the poverty line looks like for a given family type in any year from 2000 to the present.

Our policy team works to lobby and influence decision makers, so that disadvantaged families are supported and enabled and have the access to services they need to escape poverty and give their children the best start in life.

Policy priorities

Our main policy priorities are:

Problem debtWe are exposing the impact of problem debt on children. Our joint report with StepChange reveals the true scale of problem debt for children and families – and the huge impact it is having on families. Our policy work supports our new campaign, The Debt Trap.

Warm homesWe are working to ensure that every child lives in a warm home.

Early yearsEnsuring that key early years services are engage with the most disadvantaged, hardest to reach families and that child poverty in the very earliest years is address so that children are not born into poverty.